Outdoors: Youth's prize would be deer of lifetime for many hunters

Deer hunters will never forget 2012. Incredibly, another record-book buck — this one by muzzleloader in the Berkshires — has been taken in Massachusetts.

In a spot that is likely to remain a secret forever, Craig Luscier of Dalton took an enormous 24-pointer with a 27-inch spread. The rack could have been even bigger, but several additional tines were broken off during recent battles with other bucks.

Revealing the location certainly would bring great numbers of hunters there as the old buck had surely sired many fawns with his genes in that area. Luck, as usual, played a part in the gigantic buck’s harvest.

Luscier was supposed to take his son hunting that day. Had the boy been with him, Luscier would have encouraged him to shoot a small five-point buck that appeared earlier. The shot certainly would have alerted and scared off the giant buck.

Most outdoorsmen by now have heard all about the other great record-book, bow-harvested buck of Rutland. But few have heard about the Hebert buck.

Tom Hebert, 12, got off his Holden school bus at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, and asked his dad to take him hunting. With the encouragement of his parents, Lisa and Scott Hebert, Tom earlier had worked hard practicing his shooting and took a hunter safety course.

Arriving at their favorite, close-to-home hot spot with only an hour of hunting time left, they disappointingly saw another hunter already there. Knowing the area well, they took a five-minute hike to another vantage point. Tom sat and waited, his gun on safety, and his mentoring dad about 10 feet behind.

After 40 minutes of total quiet, while Scott was looking in another direction, Tom heard a branch snap and saw antlers coming through the brush. He waited for a good clear shot, fired once, then followed up with a second shot at about 40 yards. He did justice to his grandfather’s venerable 20-gauge pump.

There would be no need to track. The deer went down within 35 yards. After a brief celebration, his dad tagged the deer, and the hard work and anatomy lessons began. Scott showed his son how to field dress the big buck to cool it quickly and prevent the meat from spoiling. Its diminished weight furthermore would prove easier to haul out. Combining their strength, the forever-bonded father-son team began the long, arduous drag back to the truck, not getting out of the woods until well after dark.

After checking in the deer that evening, Tom showed off his harvest to his grandparents and several friends. His first deer — a wide and heavy-framed 10-point buck weighing 180 pounds dressed — would be the deer of a lifetime for many hunters. For him and his family, it will forever transcend in importance all other deer. Not much in life tops a young hunter’s first buck. That success likely will open the door to a lifetime of exciting outdoor adventures.

Back in April, Tom participated in the Massachusetts Youth Turkey Hunt and bagged a 20-pound gobbler. This fall, with the help of his dad and their chocolate Lab, he also shot his limit of pheasants. Throughout the summer and fall, Tom practiced trap shooting, a sport that no doubt helped him accelerate his shooting skills.

Unlike many kids, Tom Hebert likely never will suffer from NDD (nature deficit disorder) or be totally contained by the socially debilitating indoor traps of television and computers. We can’t underestimate the importance of this intimate, hands-on experience and the countless benefits it is likely to produce in the future. Take a child hunting or fishing whenever you can.

Conn. offers deer website
Which towns offer the best opportunities to shoot a deer? We now know the big deer-producing town of Rutland is aptly named. Charlton and Holden also have deservedly been publicized lately for their exceptional deer.

The best spots in Massachusetts are kept largely quiet, if not guarded with extreme secrecy. But in Connecticut, hunters are turning their harvest information in by computer, and biologists are sharing it.

KillReports/2012ArcheryDeer.asp. It weekly updates the harvest, breaking down reports by town, private land, state land, adult does, young does, adult bucks, button bucks, and bucks with eight or more points.

Checking out a recent update, Newton was leading the state, producing 103 bow kills, but only 12 of them were bucks with eight or more points. Redding had 90 bow kills, and Wilton produced 77. Greenwich gave up just 39 deer, but 13 of them, an excellent percentage, were bucks with good racks.

Other towns producing at least 10 bucks with eight or more points were Danbury, East Haddam, Killingworth, Mansfield, Montville and Ridgefield.

Some areas produce mainly does or bucks with small racks. Pomfret, though giving up only 31 deer, had 13 good bucks — another excellent trophy percentage. Thompson, where I do most of my bow hunting, produced 62 deer, but only six were eight points or greater.

Hopefully by 2013, Mass Wildlife’s new deer project leader, David Stainbrook, will be able to provide similarly valuable details to help Massachusetts deer hunters, as computerized input should make that information readily available.

The proper antlerless deer or buck tag should be filled out and separated from the license and immediately applied to the deer. I carry a big license holder just for that purpose, pinning it to the deer’s ear. The tag should not be accompanied by the rest of the license.

While being transported in a vehicle, a portion of the deer should be exposed to view. That may mean sticking a leg out a window. The stereotypical placement of a deer across the hood of a vehicle is never advisable, as heat from the engine can ruin meat.

Lastly, be sure to have your FID card or LTC card with you. Failure to follow the law can ruin a successful hunt. Environmental police can confiscate your deer and even make an arrest when sportsmen break these laws.